Home improvement renovations will undoubtedly become the focus of homeowners’ attention during the COVID-19 shutdown.

Those at home, who can withstand the economic tempest, will be busy working on those long-overlooked jobs around the house and garden. Or around the apartment and its courtyard or balcony.

With plenty of time on our side, it has likely there will be more than an early spring clean accomplished.

Easter will see the suburbs alive with the sound of backyard Easter egg hunts, interrupted by some DIY hammering here and there. Or maybe just fixing broken items such as that door that jams shut.

The aisles at Bunnings have seen a huge surge in buyers – and that has come without their tempting trademark bonus sausage sizzle too.

Some of the forthcoming home improvement tasks will be styling the property ready for sale, but others will delve deeper in interior design and decoration, or start on something a bit more structural, subject to council approvals.

With the shift to autumn private treaty listings and many others thinking spring might be the time to sell, this is the opportunity to potentially help improve the value of your biggest asset. Or, at worst, it might contribute towards buffering the price discounting that seems inevitable until the contagion passes.

Renovating can be a battle of heart versus cash flow, but maybe there is the prospect of cautious refinancing with your lender at the current record low rates.

The range for renovation costs can be huge, but that has because no two renovations are the same.

Be warned: do not over-estimate your ability and underestimate the cost but expect renovation expenditure per square metre to average between $2000 to $4000.

Last year’s annual Houzz & Home Australia survey of more than 8800 respondents found kitchens are the most popular rooms to renovate, followed by living rooms, bedrooms, bathrooms and laundries.

Half of homeowners in the Houzz survey were renovating three rooms per project, at an overall median spend of $20,000. Now is a good time to try and find stylish furniture at small prices, like this Alara 3-seat sofa from Domayne.

At the higher end of the market, renovation spend in the 90th percentile reached $180,000.

The key to renovation is finding little wins. Whether that is renovating the house yourself, or doing part of the renovation yourself, to re-purposing old furniture to give it a new lease of life. It is important to find retailers and suppliers that can help you along the way too. Domayne is one that has a range of furniture perfect for any renovation.